What's the youngest a puppy should/can be bought?

Question

Namely, a yellow labrador retriever.
Trying to get it young so I'll have more time to teach it things such as being house trained, before it reaches adult hood.

I would ask Petsmart to take care of them but I'd much rather do it myself so it'll listen to me better.

Answer 1

A puppy should be with the mother until it is alleast 8 weeks of age that way the mother can teach it and it will be able to live on its own. Do not worry you will have plenty of time to teach it things. I have never gotten or sold a dog until it was 8 weeks of age and it was always just fine. the reason I say at least 8 weeks is some small breed dogs should stay with the other until they are 12 weeks.

Answer 2

It depends a lot on the breed. Generally speaking, the earliest a pup should be away from it's mother is 6 weeks, however with a lab I would recommend that you wait a few more weeks. 8 - 12 weeks is a good age to get a lab pup. The extra few weeks can eliminate a lot of behavior problems that you may have with a lab because it gives the pup more time to interact with the mother and siblings. Also, by 12 weeks it will be mature enough to accept training better. Trust me....you'll have a lot of time to train as most labs don't reach full maturity until about 2 years old.

I would recommend that you contact a professional trainer (like petsmart) to guide you in your training. Labs, like many hunting dogs, although smart, have a tendency to be stubborn.

Answer 3

I would recommend not before age 5 weeks, preferably at about 7-8 weeks. The pups are still under the immunity they got from their mothers until approximately 6 weeks. Any time after that would be appropriate. Where did Petsmart get these pups? Are they from a puppy mill, that is where most pet stores get their animals. I only mention that to make sure you are aware. I would definitely have it vet checked as soon as I got it. I do wish you good luck with your pup!

Answer 4

no younger than 8 weeks of age. There are a lot of puppys and older dogs that are availble for adoption in your area. You can go to: http://www.mypetnanny.info/PD/Shelters.htm Some of these dogs are already trained.

As far as training goes, if you don't know how to train a dog properly it is important that you take obedience classes. Yes, you have to do the training yourself. They just show you the techniques to help train your dog the right way. Evan housebreaking is important. It is important that you set the rules for this puppy.

You must use positive training, crate training is very good for housebreaking. It is very important that you are consistent in your training and you must have patience.

You can't expect somebody to train your dog for you and expect the dog to stay trained when you are doing nothing to correct the wrong behavior. You must learn how to train the dog/puppy the right way. There are DVD's and books for sale at http://www.amazon.com Look for positive dog training.

You can begin training with the basic commands as soon as 8 weeks of age. This is the best time to start training them. Just teach them one thing at a time. They have a very short attention span, so keep the training short like a 2-5 minutes tops. Then gradually increase.

Very important that you teach your dog socialization skills with kids, other dogs and people after 3 months of age.

Don't let him/her jump on you or anybody.

Answer 5

Quote: A major change in behaviour takes place at about 3 weeks of age, when the sense organs first become completely functional and the puppy begins to form its primary social relationships and to eat solid food. Another basic social change is weaning, which may occur naturally as early as 7 weeks. Unquote. (see reference below)

Another fact: Quote: Dogs and cats, like many other mammals, pass the majority of the mother's antibodies to the newborn via colostrum. Defined as the first 24 hours of milk flow following birth, colostrum is a highly concentrated mixture of large protein antibody molecules, vitamins, electrolytes, and nutrients. Unquote

Quote # 3: A puppy enters into a period of great change and sensitivity with regard to social relationships at approximately 8 weeks of age, and that his experiences at this time determine which animals and human beings will become his closet social relatives. This is a time of major decision affecting all the rest of his life, and the period is therefore a critical one. By a critical period, we mean a special time in life when a small amount of experience will produce a great effect on later behaviour. Unquote (See reference below)

So what does all this mean? Puppies get their "anti-bodies" in the first 24 hours of milk feeding from the mother. They maintain this resistance to about 6-7 weeks at which point the puppy no longer has the same resistance to disease. That is why veternarians like to vaccinate around that time.

By 6 weeks the puppy is on kibble but moistened with warm water to soften the crunchiness.

Now, what should you do? If you have never owned a dog...it might not be bad idea to wait to 8 weeks. But not longer.

Why? The critical period - this is the time between 8 and 14 weeks of age . This is the period which has the most profound impact on a puppy in terms of developing attachments and relationships to people and/or other dogs.

In short - the longer you leave a puppy with it's litter mates...the more dog social the animal becomes ...this is OK to a point but beyond 10 weeks, dogs will become increasingly fearful and timid of new situations, new people, new places. You can't recover this 100% - whatever imprinted on the puppy at that period is there pretty much to stay.

I prefer to get my puppies at 6 weeks from a breeder (assuming they are healthy) and begin the socialization period immediately. That means out on walks, out to the park , out in the car.

People are divided on this because of the risk of disease - you have to decide. I have owned/bred Dobermans - these are not the type of dogs that should be allowed to develop anti-social behaviour with people.

So there is a trade-off - a risk if you will of socializing puppy vs isolating puppy for risk of health. It's a fine line.

Regarding housebreaking..a puppy will generally be able to hold based on the following forumula (approx) number of months old + 1 Example: dog is 2 months old (8 weeks) can hold 3 hours. Puppies are stimulated to go immediately upon awakening, after eating and drinking and while exercising. At 6 weeks, they really can't hold long at all...

Having said all of this, if you have never owned a dog before, you are in for quite a ride. My final piece of advice :DON"T BUY FROM A PET STORE. And you need to enroll in puppy kindergarden or some training so that you will know what to do - don't rely on others to do it for you. Consider buying from a reputable breeder that can guide you with some basic puppy housebreaking skills, etc. It is worth the extra cost.

Answer 6

12 - 16 weeks is the best time. Prior to that their immune system is not fully developed. Give the breeder a chance to complete the immunizations schedule and ensure there are no health issues. Any younger and you risk problems with infections brought on by the stress of changing their environment.

Housetraining is going to take you several months. You cannot expect to housetrain in simply a few weeks. Petsmart isn't going to be able to housetrain them. Also, for basic training, the younger the puppy the shorter their attention span. I typically don't start any formal training until they are at least 16-20 weeks of age. (Sit, stay, come)

Answer 7

I breed Chihuahuas! The puppies, can be adopted out at 8 weeks and no younger. I personally, will not adopt mine out until they are 12 weeks old, and the reason for that is, they are still learning things from mom and dad, in this time. They tend to have a much better temperament and personality, if you wait until 12 weeks.

Answer 8

A good breeder is not going to let a puppy go until it is at the very least 8wks old. If you get one any younger then that you are going to have more trouble house training it then you would if you got one a little older. Younger than 8 wks they have little control over there bladders and don't even know the need to poo until it's already on its way out. Please don't buy a puppy younger than 8 wks old!

Answer 9

the youngest age ANY dog should be seperated from its mother is 8 weeks after its birth

as then it is at an age where it is old enough to start to take care of itself without mum and can start to process and learn new and basic training skills for its life

buy a book about dogs

home your yellow lab has a lurveyly life
!

Answer 10

8 weeks